Page 42 of Finding Emotion

“Hell, Dame, you’re thinking about this all wrong. This thing could really shoot off your career. You’re tapping into a whole new market.” Jimmy pushed open the outside doors.

The sky was a brighter blue that Damon had expected. He hadn’t been at the venue as long as he thought.

“I’ve been doing just fine.” Damon reached for his phone, intending to shoot off a message about them wrapping up. He frowned at it when he realized he had no way of contacting Skylar directly. “Can you let Mandy know we’re headed there?” He regretted the ask when Jimmy smirked at him.

“You dweeb. She didn’t even give you her digits, did she?” He laughed, but lifted his phone. His humor died. “Great, now I have to contact that ballbuster.”

Damon’s hand tightened on his guitar case. “Her manager was only trying to help this morning.” He bit the inside of his cheek, the sharp copper that followed underlining his annoyance. He’d noticed Jimmy had begun to slack off since the tour ended. Maybe even before that. Damon was so goal-oriented, he couldn’t quite understand it. “Contacting Erin was pretty obvious. Why didn’t you?”

“I had a brain lapse, that’s all.”

Damon forced the words out. “Are you sure?”

Jimmy’s scowl returned. “I got it handled, didn’t I?”

“If something’s going on, you know you can talk to me, right?” Damon tried to catch his eye, but Jimmy stepped ahead. “It just seems—”

“Leave off, Dame,” Jimmy snapped. “You’re not as perfect as you think.”

“I know I’m not.” If Damon hadn’t promised his mom he’d give it his all, he would have thrown in the towel long ago. With every album release, he expected his fans to figure it out, the fact that he was playing pretend.

But Damon loved the music. He was going to cling to it as long as he could.

He studied Jimmy’s profile, expecting the hard edge of his clenched jaw. That meant he’d heard him, at least. They’d found that rhythm over the years. Now that he’d spoken up, Jimmy would shift into the great manager he could be, like he always did. It was Damon’s own fault, letting them become more like friends, but loneliness was a bitch.

Maybe more time at the tavern during this break would be better for him in the long run. Jimmy was being an ass, but he wasn’t wrong about the likely outcome of things with Skylar.

When she wasn’t at the tavern when Damon arrived, he told himself it was a good thing. Malcolm’s welcoming smile eased the knot inside, even if he knew his friend was analyzing his expression like he always did.

“There you are,” Malcolm said. He shoved hair behind his ear before turning to pull a beer. The barest nub of a ponytail held the majority of it back. “Wasn’t sure I’d see you tonight.”

“Trenton plied me with baby slobber last night.” Damon remembered how breakable the baby had felt when he’d held her.

Malcolm set the beer on a tray. “I doubt the other guys will make it in.”

“I’m not enough for you?” Damon grinned through the weird twist in his gut.

Malcolm didn’t laugh it off like he expected. “Don’t do that.” His eyes shifted past Damon’s shoulder, the brown going all soft.

Damon turned, studying the woman’s well-defined cheekbones and stubborn chin that resembled a face he’d stared into often lately. Soft, shoulder-length, brown hair and a ready smile set her apart. “Hello, Jami.”

“Wow. Damon Lynch.” To his surprise, a red tinge spread over Jami’s cheeks. Her hands covered them. “Sorry. I’ve listened to all your music.”

Damon blinked at her. “Wait, you’re a fan?”

Jami shrugged. “Well, Skylar mentioned you pretty often over the years. It made me check you out.”

“She did?” Damon ran a hand over the back of his neck. “That surprises me.”

“Now you’re both blushing.” Malcolm pushed the tray toward Jami. “Here. For table seven.”

Jami nodded, grabbing it.

Malcolm watched her. “I guess I’m glad you two didn’t run into each other when she visited Skylar during the tour.”

“Please.” Damon wished he had a drink to hold on to. He needed something to do with his hands. “From what you’ve said, you two were meant for each other since you were teenagers. I can’t believe I never heard about her back then.”

“You got your first break with the band around that time.” Malcolm’s jaw clenched. “And the stuff with Celia happened.” He continued to follow Jami’s progress with his eyes. “Time is a funny thing.”

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